Do i sell nag or not?

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wench

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Basic story is, selling my nag at some point, was thinking about this time next year.

However, he has been such a pain recently, I am now thinking I just want rid of him.

Cant catch him in the field, so when you do want to ride you have to round him up with the help of a tractor and four other people.

We have tried keeping him in, and giving him lots of work, but it hasnt made him any better.

Went out to two shows last couple of weeks and he has been an a**ehole at both of them.
 
How long have you had him and how long have you been working on the issues?

I was like that with Baron last month. I had had enough of his napping and could see no light at the end of the tunnel. Because of his napping I could not do what I wanted and I had been working on it for a year.

Ive decided to give him until the end of the season with the advice of my instructor who is totally against me selling him as he is super but the napping is getting me down. Im paying someone to help me aswell.

I think you should set yourself a deadline and see how you feel at the end. We all have times when we feel like selling or swapping our horses but you may regret it.

Set yourself some realistic targets and if he doesnt meet them and you still feel like selling him then go for it. At the end of the day if you feel that strongly about selling then perhaps its the best thing to do.
 
I wouldnt let you catch me either! Chasing him with a tractor and four people. Then confining him and working him hard. No wonder he doesnt want to be caught.
 
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Question is.... who was want to work though these issues?

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Does it have issues? Just doesn't like being caught by the sounds of it - and we all know plenty of those.......
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well if you dont catch him and dont work him he gets worse and worse and worse???

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In the spring when they all go out 24/7 my horse is a pain to catch for a while. Good idea if you catch them, bring them in give them a groom, a feed and bit of tlc then put them back out without working them.

That way they dont associate being brought in with work. There are not many horses who would rather work than pig out on grass.

So do you only ever bring your horse in to be worked? Id try and form more of a bond so your horse looks forward to your daily visit and doesnt know what exactly to expect when hes brought in.
 
he wasnt always caught to be worked. Refuses to go near anyone and as soon as he sees some one he gallops of to the end of the field.
 
When your horse is being a pain the first thing you think is right sell him, I know I have been there myself so do sympathise with how you fee.

But tbh all horses are a pain sometimes and you just have to ask yourself if you can work through it with him, and if you cant will you be able to "work through it" with any horse?

Agree with whoever said that if you only catch him to work then obviously he will not want to be caught - he sounds like a clever lad to me.

Now I dont want to sound like an evangelist or anything but have you thought of some kind of positive reinforcement - say clicker training, then he might actually want to work rather than trying to avoid it, just a thought.
 
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he wasnt always caught to be worked. Refuses to go near anyone and as soon as he sees some one he gallops of to the end of the field.

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You do have to ask yourself why he is behaving like this, what has happened to him to make him so sure he does not want to be near humans?
 
abosultly nothing. caught him one day, groomed him and turned him out. not been able to get near him since.
 
How long have you had him, has he always behaved like this? Could something have happened to him before you owned him? Is he turned out on his own or with other horses?
 
had him 18 months. he doesnt hate me, as if he was in the school no tack etc, he follows me around like a dog. hes out with other horses, has been like it on an odd occasion, but only about 3/4 times.
 
Think about what you are saying here, he has not wanted to be caught on 3 or 4 occasions in 18 months! Is he such a bad horse? So he misbehaved at a couple of shows, from what I have seen at My local RC shows, thats pretty normal, all horses behave badly sometimes.

Cut him a bit of slack, take a deep breath and relax, it will come good in the end.

Oh and for goodness sake stop chasing him around with a tractor - not a good way to make him want to be caught.

Sounds like he is just being naughty and he will improve if you persevere with him.
 
I had this dilemma with my last horse. I'd had him for nearly 2 years, and although we did fairly well together (bought as a green 5 year old and got up to intermediate novice level BE) I just never quite felt I 'clicked' with him like i had with other horses. He was never an easy horse, everything was a bit of a battle. In the end I sold him last summer as I just wasn't enjoying riding him, it was more aggro than fun!
I would say that horses have personalities just like humans, and like people you get on with some and not with others. I think my personality just wasn't that compatible with Charlie's - we both sort of wound each other up somehow!! Maybe it's the same with you, in which case no shame in it, perhaps it's better to find a horse which you 'get on with' better. May sound stupid but I do believe some horses suit some people and not others, and vice versa. And at the end of the day, it's meant to be fun, you're not a professional (I assume?), you're doing it for the love of it so if you're not enjoying your horse what's the point?!
 
Just to finish off the above, I bought a new mare this February and I am so much happier with her than I ever was with my last horse. She is an absolute sweetheart, riding is a pleasure again rather than a chore!!
 
I feel that horses are very perceptive to moods and pick up on things and particularly human moods very quickly...I would say that this could be causing some problems and you need to think about how you act around him...just a thought because my horse certainly picks up on my moods and when I went through a terrible time with mine...it ironed it self out overnight once I had chilled out and stopped being tense around him.
 
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II would say that horses have personalities just like humans, and like people you get on with some and not with others.

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Totally agree with this, so its something else to think about, but if he has been good for ages and suddenly is being naughty maybe you are suited but he's just being naughty. Do you have a good instructor to help you and advise you?
 
That is so true also, you can get into a vicious circle - horse goes badly, so you get angry and tense, so horse goes worse, so you get even more angry and tense... and so it goes on.
 
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caught him one day, groomed him and turned him out. not been able to get near him since.

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Sounds like something or someone has frightened him badly, for such a sudden change. Either that or something medical, especially as his behaviour has also changed under saddle. Has a vet and saddler seen him and done all the normal checks?
 
have you tried turning him out in a smaller field but next to his friends and leaving a headcollar on. depends if you have got to hate this horse then maybe time to sell. but to round the poor fella up with a tractor and 4 people going towards him is pretty awful thing to do.
 
well i dont hate him, just v v v annoyed with him.

Tractor came in as useful transport across a rather large field.

Unfortunatly yard where I am on no way of sectioning off a small bit of field for him, and he has a headcollar on now.

He is ok at home to ride, just when hes going out (recently) has just decided he doesnt want to do it, so hes not doing it. Hes had nothing scare him, or anything out the ordinary happen with him. Vet has been everything ok.
 
To work through his behaviour you would prolly need to move yards to somewhere better suited turnout wise and certainly need to have lessons with a qualified an instructor, most would be happy to teach you in a show environment after they have ironed out any 'problems' at home, alternatively you could attend some clinics. Rounding him up will probably cause him to be less likely to want to be caught, spending time in a smaller field with him, just catching him and and feeding and grooming him like others have suggested will also help.
I would get his tack, back, teeth and general health rechecked.
If you don't want to put in the effort, then sell him asap.
 
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